King Tut and London

FLYING Staff

Monday, March 30, 2009 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A check airman is unexpectedly tasked with a special assignment: transporting the $4 billion King Tut exhibition from London's Heathrow to DFW, a mission specifically requested by upper-level management.
Despite anticipating heightened security and complex logistics for the valuable cargo, the author finds the initial flights to London and the "King Tut" flight itself surprisingly routine and devoid of the expected fanfare.
The author ultimately discovers that "the real mummy never traveled," implying they were transporting artifacts or a replica, which makes the high-profile assignment a largely conventional transatlantic flight.

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My monthly check is similar to the process of writing. Initially, the schedule resembles more of a rough draft than a publishable piece of literature. Editing is part of the process. Some months involve more editing than others. In that regard, when I retrieved a voice mail message to call our lead flight standards coordinator, I knew to prepare for a revision. But the revision was not what I had expected.

Mary explained that she had been given priority to remove me from my next trip that was to begin the following day. I was originally scheduled to fly with a new captain upgrade. Earlier in the day I had left an informational message with the new captain in anticipation of beginning his OE (operating experience). Apparently, that plan was no longer in the cards.